Emile Bellet (1941-2022) French, Signed and Numbered Hors de Commerce Lithograph. Shows a female figure resting against a wall in front of a stunning nighttime seascape. Titled "Mediterranee" on label on back. Numbered "HC 85/95" in pencil lower left. Signed in pencil lower right. In art print terminology, “HC” or “H.C.” stands for Hors de Commerce, which translates to “out of trade” or “not for sale” in English. These prints, similar to Artist’s Proofs (APs), are not intended for commercial sale but are often given as gifts by the artist or publisher to those involved in the printmaking process, like the artist or printer. Often they are specifically meant for display purposes, such as in a gallery, and as such they are usually one-of-a-kind prints. 

Overall Size: 20 x 34 1/2 in. 

Sight Size: 7 x 21 1/2 in. 

Frame Thickness: 1 in. 

Emile Bellet was born in Provence, France in 1941. A self-taught artist, he began to paint at the age of five, and when he was twelve he won first prize in a national art journal competition In 1960 he held his first solo exhibition, and his career finally began in earnest when he was noticed by Galerie Guigne in 1976. Bellet completed the stained glass windows of the church Notre Dame de Bon Voyage in 1978 in Port de Bouc, and was commissioned the following year by the Alpine Maritime Region to paint several works for the walls of their facilities. He enjoyed painting “en plein air” like the Impressionists, and felt most closely aligned with the work of the Fauves, frequently capturing the villages and scenery from his native France and the colors of the Mediterranean. His wife and daughter were his biggest inspirations, almost always the models for the mysterious female figures he incorporated into most of his pieces. In the early 2000s he achieved international recognition and representation through Park West Gallery, and began to hold exhibitions overseas in Japan, Senegal, Brazil, and America, with permanent collections on display throughout his native France. Bellet passed away due to natural causes on July 1st, 2022, and since then his works have found their way into more and more private, public, and corporate collections.